


Sea Shanty

by Thirrin



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, It starts out fluffy amd sweet but then it goes from 0 to 100 lol, Mermaid!Sakura and Shipwrecked!Suigetsu, gift for kyoties on tumblr!, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:01:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25990240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thirrin/pseuds/Thirrin
Summary: A storm leaves Suigetsu shipwrecked and alone. Well, not completely alone. What's it like to owe a life debt to a mermaid?
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Hoozuki Suigetsu
Comments: 3
Kudos: 47





	Sea Shanty

The storm came abruptly and without warning, bearing down on the ship and its crew with merciless glee as they were thrown and tossed about. The winds, just as much as the waves, seemed insistent on never letting any of the crew members regain their footing for even a moment and Suigetsu was fairly certain he saw a man fall overboard and into the violent water below. He didn't know for sure and he didn't want to think about it as the waves would certainly smash the body back up against the side of the ship before dragging it under.

At this moment, as his world becomes water and wind and rain, he can't remember a time in his life when he'd been dry. His clothes are soaked through and he can feel the chill right down to his bone, the rain falling hard enough to hurt against his bare skin. He can barely hear the orders being shouted above deck, the roar of the wind and the crash of the sea deafening and silencing everything besides the occasional boom of thunder, but he fulfills his duties to the best of his abilities. He ties down what he can and helps other men with the rigging and is suddenly sent stumbling when a stray elbow strikes his face.

He is knocked against the deck railing and has a clear view of the angry waves smashing against the side of the ship, feeling everything rock to one side and get terribly close to pushing him off-balance. Suigetsu gets a face full of salt water for his troubles, but, before he can pull himself away, he spots something under the water.

There, further out where the waves aren't so violent, he swears he sees a face beneath the layer of seafoam. An icy chill, colder than the storm, fills him briefly as he thinks its the face of a crew member who'd been swept out to sea, but then the eyes blink and he realizes that it's watching the ship be tossed about from a safe distance. Just as it seems to meet Suigetsu's bewildered gaze, the ship rocks back the other way and the momentum pulls him away from the railing.

The next few moments are a blur and, before he can tell what's happening, Suigetsu suddenly realizes he doesn't know what's up and what's down and his lungs are both freezing and _burning_ as his eyes sting and his fingers grow numb. The taste of salt on his tongue is stronger than it should be from mere ocean spray and he comes to the horrific realization that he's under water. The ocean both surrounds and fills him, in his mouth and in his stomach and in his lungs, and he desperately starts kicking, hoping he's facing the surface. Just moments after he breaks through and feels air on his face, coughing up seawater and trying to catch a breath, a wave comes crashing down on top of him.

It submerges him once more and drags him down with the force, what little breath he'd managed to obtain quickly knocked out of him. Disoriented, he desperately tries to swim for the surface again but feels his limbs going numb from the cold and his head light from the lack of air. Suigetsu forces his eyes open as a last-ditch effort to try to find the surface and thinks he can see the moon. It appears from behind the storm clouds briefly, distorted by the movement of the ocean water and so far away - too far and too late. He reaches towards it and the surface, the last of his breath bubbling out around his mouth in an unheard cry, and the light of the moon disappears once more.

There's only darkness around him. Darkness and an icy chill that's seeping into his bones, clutching at his heart, until, suddenly, there's _warmth._

It's faint and vaguely lost through the encroaching numbness of his skin, but it wraps around him gently in a tender embrace. Strongest at his back, the warmth clutches him close and he only realizes he's reached the surface once more when he reflexively takes a deep breath. He looks down, sees pale arms wrapped around his chest through the black spots in his vision, and turns his head to try to take a look at his rescuer. Suigetsu feels something brush his legs as he recognizes the face from earlier and succumbs to the darkness, passing out as he's gently pulled through the water and away from the capsized ship.

**: :**

When Suigetsu comes to, it's with the taste of the sea on his tongue and the feeling of a terrible headache splitting his skull. He groans and reaches up to rub at his forehead, wincing at a tender bump under his still-damn bangs and hissing under his breath before he tries to sit up. The bare skin of his arms scrape against rock and he carefully cracks an eye open, relieved to find himself in the shade rather than faced with the bright morning sun. A quick glance around reveals that he's half-submerged in a tide pool, his upper half laying on the rocky edge and his legs in the water. 

It's not terribly deep and his knees scrape against more rock as well as sea grass, a pair of fish scavenging for algae near his ankles darting away at the movement. Groaning again, Suigetsu manages to roll onto his back and doesn't mind the way the rock digs into him through his tattered shirt. He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, breathing in the calm air and feeling the water of the pool lap against his legs and waist as he tries to recall what had happened.

A cloud, white and friendly, rolls by overhead to darken his patch of shade even more so and Suigetsu thinks back to the ship, recalling how he'd been knocked about, banged his head against the railing, and been sent over the edge and into the water. He'd been _drowning_ , pulled under by the power of the ocean and as good as dead.

But something - _someone_ had saved him and pulled him to the surface, warm and gentle despite their firm, determined grip on his body.

And had apparently dragged him ashore, judging by his current situation.

Suigetsu opens his eyes and his violet gaze travels over the rocky shore, taking in the sight of numerous tide pools and the ocean ahead. A stretch of about ten feet of rock separates him from the water and, as he twists to look behind him, he can see where the tide pools give way to more solid stone. A beach begins out to his right in the distance, the white sand nearly blinding in the sun, and feeds into dunes and tall grass as the earth slopes up. Directly behind him and out to his left is a tall cliffside, casting the shadow that's blanketing him. It stands tall and towering for a fair distance, even as the rocky shore suddenly drops off and leaves the ocean waves to break against the cliff's face.

He sighs and runs a hand through his white hair, gritty with sea salt as the water is starting to dry. Heaving himself up and onto the edge of the tide pool, he pulls his legs fully out of the water and lays back for a few moments, trying to decide what to do. His brief inspection of his surroundings hadn't shown any other signs of life - no row boats pulled up onto the beach and no bodies washed up like himself. From what he could remember, they hadn't been anywhere near the next port city before the storm hut, so it was very likely that he'd been brought to an uninhabited island.

Suigetsu frowns to himself, trying to recall the face of his rescuer. His memories are fuzzy, but fierce, determined eyes appear in his mind and his frown deepens as he stares up at the sky. Had they joined him on the island? Why weren't they here now, waiting for him to wake up?

Or had they been swept away before they could get themself to safety?

Sighing, Suigetsu sits up and decides to explore the beach. Maybe supplies from the ship had washed up or other survivors had set up camp in the woods.

Once he's standing, he finally spots the scrap of cloth hanging over the edge of another, larger tide pool between his own and the ocean. Suigetsu blinks, recognizing it as the sleeve to his jacket, and hurriedly moves to retrieve it - only to stop as he glances into the tide pool of itself and sees something curled up under the water.

It's a girl, he realizes after a moment of shocked confusion, but also definitely _not_ . Long, coral pink hair spills over her shoulders and down her back as she lays curled up on her side on a bed of sea grass, her sleeping expression serene. The ledge she's laying on isn't the deepest part of the large pool, but she's fully submerged and Suigetsu _would_ have been concerned had it not been for her scaled, aqua green _tail._

Each scale glimmers and shines, even despite the shade of the cliffside, and her fins that fade to a paler shade of green are nearly translucent at the ends. Smaller patches of the scales are scattered over the shoulder and arm he can see and over her cheekbones, disappearing under her hair. A pointed ear pokes out from the stream of pink and the long, flowing fins at the end of her tail drape over the side of the ledge.

Her arm is tucked up close to her chest but he can still see the rise and fall of her breathing and her fins twitch occasionally, further confirming that he's looking at a very real, very _alive_ , mermaid.

Suigetsu takes a cautious step forward and realizes that she's clutching the other sleeve of his grey jacket. As he debates whether he should try to retrieve it, she shifts and uncurls, air bubbles floating up to the surface of the water as she yawns and her tail stretches out. One of her arms reaches up and out of the water in a stretch and she pauses, seemingly caught off-guard by the feeling of air on her skin and scales and she immediately spots him when she opens her eyes.

Suigetsu gets a good look at familiar green eyes before she hurriedly slips off the edge of the tide pool shelf and into the deeper pocket of water. He quickly drops to his knees and peers over the side of the rocky edge to search for her, realizing why he recognized her eyes. The pool is deeper than he expected and he can barely see her tucked up against the rocks at the bottom, staring up at him. He searches through the shadows and stoney edges but can't find a path out of the tide pool and, as he sits back and looks out to the nearby ocean, he quickly comes to a conclusion.

"You saved me," Suigetsu says aloud, hoping the mermaid can hear him under the water as he grips the edge and stares down at her. He continues, already convinced that she'd been the one to pull him up from the depths of the ocean. "You dragged me ashore but got trapped here when low tide came. Didn't you?"

She simply stares back up at him with an unblinking gaze, her hair settling around her and her tail giving a short twitch. Suigetsu panics slightly at her silence - maybe she doesn't even _understand_ him - but then she moves, her body relaxing as she sits up slightly and nods.

He's instantly grinning and moves forward, reaching into the water to hold out a hand towards her in offering. The mermaid hesitates, gaze flickering to his open hand, before pushing off from the bottom of the tide pool and floating up. Her hand is warm against his and Suigetsu gently pulls her back up onto the ledge of seagrass, relieved when she doesn't seem bothered by poking her head and torso up out of the water. 

The gills lining the sides of her neck and along her ribs open once before sealing shut and she takes a breath of air, reaching up to tuck a wet strand of pink hair behind her ear. It's long enough to trail into the water, flat and clinging against her back and her bare - Suigetsu tries not to let his gaze travel downwards, his cheeks lighting up with pink - chest.

The two inspect each other for a long moment before he finally moves, changing positions to sit on the upper ledge and let his legs dangle in the water. Seagrass brushing against his bare feet, Suigetsu smiles at the mermaid, feeling a little breathless at being faced with a living folk tale.

"Thank you. For saving me." He reaches up, grinning sheepishly as he rubs the back of his neck and ruffles his white hair. "I'm sorry that you got stuck here 'cause of me though."

She doesn't say anything, green eyes following the movement of his arm, but smiles and shakes her head. Turning her head, she looks out to the nearby ocean and shrugs, lifting a cupped hand out of the water and letting it spill back unto the pool.

"I don't know when the tide'll come back in," Suigetsu admits, guessing her thoughts. She can obviously understand him, but he's curious as to why she won't _speak._

She shrugs again and leans back, settling on her makeshift bed, and he gets a better look at her. Disregarding the fins, she wasn't that _big_. Her tail was about 2/3rds of her body but surely she couldn't be that heavy…

Suigetsu looks to the strip of rock separating her from the ocean, assessing the distance as he frowns to himself. Yeah, he could totally do this.

"I think I could carry you over to the water," He announces, glancing over to gauge her reaction. The mermaid looks up at him in surprise before she pauses thoughtfully, her eyes roving over him assessingly as she frowns to herself.

"No, really," Suigetsu pulls his legs from the water and moves to his feet, crouching down as he holds out an arm. He grins down at her, fairly certain that she wasn't all that heavy. "It's better than having to wait for the water to rise!"

She hesitates for a moment, glancing over the strip of rock between her and the water, before offering a nervous smile and nodding. Suigetsu's grin grows determined as she reaches up towards him and he hooks an arm under her shoulder and wraps it around her, carefully pulling her higher out of the pool. Her arms curl around his neck and, once he can reach, his free arm hooks under her tail about where knees would be on a human. Taking care to keep his hands away from anywhere appropriate, Suigetsu slowly stands out of his crouch and takes a moment to find his balance.

She _is_ lighter than he'd been expecting and he adjusts his hold slightly, curious at the feeling of her scales against his skin. He turns and, as the last of her trailing fins leave the water, they both realize that something odd is happening. Rather than smooth scales under his hand, he suddenly feels warm skin and they both look down to her tail, shocked to see it _change_.

It turns to water and drips off her form, sparkling scales falling like stars, and she gasps, attempting to move her new pair of very human legs but barely managing more than a twitch. Suigetsu stares before glancing to her face, reading her expression. While she doesn't seem to be in any pain from the change, she's obviously startled by it. Must be her… first time out of the water or something.

She sends him a wary, concerned look, managing to kick one of her legs slightly, and he replies with a reassuring smile.

"Let's… let's get you into the water. I bet it's just a temporary thing." He's never met a mermaid before so, _of course_ , he has no idea if that's true, but it's the best solution he has and he doesn't want her to get freaked out.

With a small nod and her eyes still pinned to her legs, she tightens her hold around his neck and Suigetsu quickly, yet carefully, carries her over to the edge of the rocky shore. It's only a few short strides and she's even lighter without her tail, but the rocks are uneven and jagged so he's cautious with where he steps. The ocean is fortunately calm and there's no danger of the gentle waves smashing her against the rocks the moment she's back in the water, but he still slowly crouches back down until he's on his knees. Leaning out as far as he can without losing his balance, he carefully slips the mermaid into the water and holds his breath as he releases her.

She disappears under the surface and, for a few anxious moments, Suigetsu grips the edge of the rocks and peers down into the water. Then there's a flick of a pale green fin a few feet out and she pops back up, a wide smile on her face as she grabs the edge and rises to pecks his cheek.

He's stunned for a moment before he grins, letting out a relieved laugh.

"I wouldn't say we're even, since you saved my _life_ and you would have probably been fine in the tide pool for a few hours," Suigetsu sits back, his grin widening as she rests her crossed arms on the stones and smiles up at him. Her returned tail splashes behind her, flinging water at him as he chuckles, his cheek still tingling from her kiss. "But I guess this is a step towards repaying you."

**: :**

"So, what _is_ your name?"

After wandering the shore for hours, the mermaid following along beside him in the water, he'd eventually found a lagoon on the west side of the island and had decided to set up shelter there. His lean-to is set up at the edge of the beach, a decent effort after searching the nearby woods for materials, but he finds himself spending most of his time on the outcropping of rock that stretches out against another cliff. The small waterfall nearby gave him a source of freshwater and the lagoon itself seemed to be filled with fish, but rocks were large and flat and just the right place for him to sit and chat with her.

Well, 'chat' wasn't quite accurate.

It's the next evening now and they're enjoying a meal of fish as they relax on the rocks, her seat leaving her mostly submerged. She still hasn't spoken and Suigetsu hasn't pried, but he _is_ curious. He'd introduced himself yesterday with little reply from her other than a smile and a nod and he didn't want to keep referring to her as 'the mermaid' in his thoughts.

She pauses, picking raw fish meat off of bones while he takes bites from the cooked one he'd skewered on a stick, and starts to open her mouth to answer. Hopeful, he leans forward, but she hesitates, frowns, and shuts her mouth with a click.

Suigetsu sighs but shrugs it off, taking another bite of his dinner.

"Ah, I get," He says, grinning down at her. "It's some sort of secret mermaid language that my human ears couldn't understand, huh?"

She laughs and it's the most _lovely_ thing - even if her canine teeth are a little too sharp, a little too long - and his grin widens, feeling himself lean closer to her. When her laughter trails off and she tucks her pink hair behind her pointed ears, Suigetsu finally catches himself and leans back again, having come very close to falling into the water.

"Well," He continues, looking thoughtful as he rubs his chin. "How about I give you a nickname in my language?"

She regards him curiously and sets aside the scraps from her meal, nodding eagerly in agreement a moment later.

Suigetsu sits back and hums, looking up at the sky as he tries to think of what to call her. Quiet for a few moments, it's when he looks back down at her that he has an idea, unable to resist the urge to lean forward and catch a stray strand of her hair around his finger.

"Back home, there are these trees that bloom with flowers during the spring." He explains, letting her hair sleep through his fingers as she gazes up at him with those green eyes. Catching himself again, Suigetsu pulls away and tries to fight off his blush as he continues.

"They're, uh, the same color as your hair - that's what I'm getting at." Her head tilts, obviously curious, and his grin turns a little sheepish. "S-so, how about 'Sakura'?"

He waits for her reaction, trying to read her expression as she looks thoughtful for a few seconds. And then she's smiling brightly and nodding her approval. Suigetsu relaxes, returns the smile, and feels his chest grow warm.

"Sakura it is then."

**: :**

" _Let her go._ "

Sakura makes a pained sound as one of the surviving crew members pulls her up higher with his fistful of her hair, sand clinging to her bare legs and a few of her fallen scales scattered over the beach. She's gripping the man's wrist, nails biting into his skin, and Suigetsu is standing some 15 feet away, another crewmate behind him and restraining his arms. Held back as he is, he can't intervene and is left turning his furious gaze on the man holding Sakura, demanding she be freed while the group of shipwreck survivors stand in a loose circle around them.

"It's a _sea witch,_ boy." The man growls, ignoring the way her nails are making him bleed. "It's gone and put its siren spell on you!"

It's been two weeks since Suigetsu first woke up on the island. The first half he'd spent on his own with Sakura, days spent swimming in the lagoon and sharing fish they caught together, contented with their one-sided conversations and watching the sun set out over the ocean's horizon. She must have known where to find the shipwreck because, on more than one occasion, she brought scavenged tools and materials back to him after short disappearances that left him missing her more and more. Rope and cloth that were perfectly usable once they'd been dried out in the sun, a knife that wasn't too rusted, and a small, waterlogged telescope - such useful items that he immediately put to good use.

But then he'd stumbled upon the surviving crew from his ship. He'd been out collecting kindling for a fire when he'd bumped into one of the older men, who had quickly recognized Suigetsu and excitedly led him back to the camp they'd set up on the other side of the island. Met with mixed responses, he'd reluctantly joined their camp and had taken to sneaking away during the day to visit Sakura. He'd been wary of the crew's response to a living _mermaid_ and had tried to keep the meetings as secret as possible.

But not secret enough.

"Just let her go!" Suigetsu growls again, eyeing the tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. Still unused to the human legs she gains when she's outside of the water, Sakura has little strength in them to support her body and she can't get enough leverage on the sailor's arm to alleviate the pressure. She'd been dragged out of the water just a little while ago and the scrapes and scratches from the rocks were still raw and bright in her skin, but no one besides Suigetsu seems to care for her safety.

"She hasn't done anything- hasn't hurt anyone!" He insists, angered by one of the crew's scoffs. "Release her!"

"I bet the damned creature is what sank the ship in the first place!" One of the crew says, brandishing his crudely made fishing spear. "Every sailor knows sirens will sink a whole ship just to drown the crew! If not to eat them alive!"

" _She's not a siren_." Suigetsu hisses, struggling against the man holding his arms. He _knows_ the difference; he'd grown up on stories about all the creatures of the sea! Mermaids bring _luck_ to sailors! And this one had saved his life.

"Sakura is my _friend_. She saved me from drowning!" Surely they could see reason, could see that she wasn't a danger to any of them. 

He glances away from the men surrounding them to look to Sakura, blinking in confusion as he realizes that she's staring right at him, a concerning and almost apologetic expression on her face.

"The boy's calling it by name," Another sailor laments, as if it were a great tragedy. "The witch's got a firm grip on him now."

There's a murmur of agreement amongst the crew and the man gripping Sakura's hair holds up the knife he'd stolen from Suigetsu, pressing it close to her throat. She freezes in alarm, eyes flickering down to the blade, and bites down on her lip, trying to strain her neck away.

"Aye, lad." The sailor grunts, tightening his hold on her pink hair. "Once the creature is dead, you should be freed from its spell."

" _NO!_ " Suigetsu's struggling turns violent and he manages to slam his head back to smash against a nose, the sailor restraining him letting out a pained shout and releasing his arms. He rushes towards Sakura but is tackled to the ground by two more crew, soon finding himself pinned down by a heavy boot on his back and sand digging into his cheek. Looking up, he finds the men regarding him with mixtures of anger and pity and Sakura's gaze full of concern as she tries to stay still.

The knife against her throat is pressing hard enough ro draw blood and Suigetsu lets out a furious growl, uncaring of the sand that gets in his mouth as he bares his teeth at the one threatening Sakura.

"He might be too far gone…" One man murmurs, earning a few hushed agreements. They watch him warily, as if he would try to attack at any moment.

"Days alone with the sea witch," Says a voice above him, likely from the one pinning him down. The boot is lifted suddenly, but, before Suigetsu can get away, a hand grabs a fistful of white hair and yanks him up.

"His mind's gone, lost to the creature's will," Growls that same voice, the other men watching grimly but not moving to intervene. "Best just to put the boy out of his misery."

Suigetsu sees the knife before the words fully register, the blade appearing out of the corner of his eye. He looks to Sakura and her green eyes are wide with panic, a thin stream of blood running down her throat.

And then she closes her eyes, parts her lips, and the world seems to come to a stop.

The blade stops inches from his throat as the sailor holding him suddenly freezes. _All_ of the men suddenly stop moving, their eyes glazing over as the unnatural stillness takes control of their bodies. Suigetsu can feel a numbness in his limbs, tingling at his fingertips and sending a shiver up his spine, but he can still _move_. He shoves the hand holding the knife away from his neck and stumbles forward, the fist in his hair going slack and letting him slip free.

The sound of his own hands hitting the sand is muffled and distant to his ears and, finally, Suigetsu notices the singing.

It's soft and haunting, a melody rather than an actual song, and he feels the numbness creep up his limbs again before he shakes his head, clearing the fog in his mind. The voice is beautiful, mesmerizing and with just a slight rough edge to it - the voice of someone who's lived their life breathing in the sea's wind and tasting the salt in the air.

He doesn't realize his attention is being actively drawn away from the source until Suigetsu turns his head towards Sakura to watch her as she sings.

Her eyebrows are furrowed in concentration and the blade that had been held against her throat has been lowered. Pink hair falls loosely down her back and shoulders as she sits with her legs limp under her, the sailor's hand still outstretched and his fingers curled but empty.

Sakura's voice fills him entirely and with ease, caught in his own lungs and heavy in his heart, drowning out its beat and caressing his thoughts with a tender touch. But it flows through him just as easily, feeling returning to his limbs as she slowly opens her eyes, her pupils now narrowed to slits, and looks at him. Her gaze is full of remorse, even though he _knows_ she's actively trying to omit him from the binding effects of her song. Suigetsu stares back at her, just as mesmerized as the men but not under her control.

Her soft gaze lingers on him for a few moments longer as she sings before her expression turns determined and vicious. Sakura moves her legs out from under her and forces herself to rise, managing to stand on wobbly legs. She takes a deep breath, her song pausing for just a moment, and steadies herself before holding her head high and walking forward. Her strides grow in strength and confidence and, though Suigetsu so desperately wants to move to her side to aid her, he finds himself stuck in place as he kneels in the sand.

The crew, however, seem to have no such difficulty now and follow Sakura in a trance and she heads towards the water. Her hands raise and turn, her palms facing the sky now cast in the warm tones of the sunset ahead of her. Her voice drowns out the other sounds of the beach and Suigetsu manages to turn to watch her lead the men to the ocean, unable to fully rise despite his efforts.

As the first gentle wave touches her feet, she turns to face him. 

The sun is at her back, silhouetting her body with golden rays and shadowing the dark expression on her face. Still she sings, a true siren's call as she slowly walks backwards into the ocean, her gaze on Suigetsu while the men who would have them both killed follow her into the water. The sailors disappear under the waves one by one, walking until the shore is left behind and all that remains is Sakura's voice, until, that too, suddenly vanishes.

All is silent for a moment more before the sounds of the beach and the woods behind him suddenly burst to life once more. Everything remains still, but from a resolute calm rather than an unnatural spell, and Suigetsu watches the idle waves for some minutes, searching for signs of life - for the splash of fins, coral pink hair, and green eyes full of a warmth meant only for him. 

He stays there, kneeling in the sand, until long after the sun has set and the sky turns dark.

**: :**

Suigetsu finds her, some hours later when he'd finally pulled himself to his feet and began to wander the shoreline, at the tide pools where he'd first officially met her.

The tide is receding, giving him ample footing to walk out to where he can see Sakura as she sits on the edge of the rocks and gazes up at the moon. She doesn't turn as he approaches, but she can undoubtedly hear him, and he quietly sits down next to her.

There's blood on her face, concentrated around her mouth, and he _knows_ it's not her own. Sakura doesn't look at him, but he can feel her hesitance radiating off of her and he's fairly certain she's watching him out of the corner of her eye. They sit silently for some minutes and she slowly relaxes and, finally, Suigetsu leans back.

Hands braced behind him, he smiles up at the moon.

"That's twice you've gone and saved my life now." He says, turning his head slightly towards her. "I suppose that means I owe you double the debt."

Sakura laughs softly, leaning closer to him until her head is resting on his shoulder. She licks her lips then wipes at her mouth with the heel of her hand and her inner wrist, removing most of the blood.

"Yes," She replies, oh so softly. It's just a whisper, but even that is enough to make his fingertips numb and have him leaning closer to her, utterly intoxicated. "I suppose it does."

His fingers are sliding through her hair, one hand at the nape of her neck and the other at her waist as he pulls her closer. Her own find his face, cupping his jaw and playing with his white bangs as she gazes up at him, warm and content as she knows he does this of his own volition.

Suigetsu kisses her, tastes iron and salt and _Sakura,_ and his heart sings.

**Author's Note:**

> a get well gift fic for kyoties on tumblr!! mermaid sakura is such a weakness of mine


End file.
